Sunday, June 7, 2009

so I lied...

I'm still on my reading kick. I don't really know why, it feels like its been forever since I've read books for fun like I have been... and I have a new obsession.

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. It changed my life.

You may think I'm being dramatic. I might be. I also cannot imagine reading another book that I will like as much... I just don't know if its possible. First off, the book was written in 1957 but it could have been written yesterday. Its a commentary on society as much as it is a love story or fictional novel, and each aspect of Rand's writing works together to create something powerful and prescient. Her writing style is more descriptive than anything I've ever read, and you end up being able to envision the characters and their surroundings as if you were standing right next to them. And the characters... wow. I finished reading it a few weeks ago, and last night I actually thought about missing Dagny. Like I need to pick up the book again because I actually miss her. I want to go visit her again. How ridiculous is that?!

Part of the reason that I loved it so much was that it articulates my beliefs about the world in a way that I could not have ever explained... and makes you think about how you see yourself in relation to society, what you deserve, what you owe... here is one of my favorite passages. It might not make sense to you if you haven't read the book, but this passage was one that I really identified with.

Whenever anyone accuses some person of being "unfeeling", he means that that person is just. He means that that person has no causeless emotions and will not grant him a feeling which he does not deserve. He means that "to feel" is to go against reason, against moral values, against reality.


I mean, is that me or what? Ugh. I am IN LOVE with this book. So I read "The Fountainhead", which came more highly recommended than Atlas... and it was okay, I guess. If I would have read them in the correct order I probably would have loved it. But it just doesn't hold a candle to Atlas. I think that people who love Fountainhead probably haven't read Atlas... because Rand intended Atlas to be her culminating work, where she lays out her total philosophy on life. Which happens to coincide with mine on almost all levels (except the atheist part). No matter what, Atlas is superior. The characters and plot are more developed and likable.

I think I need to look up her non-fiction stuff now... I just can't get enough Ayn Rand.

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